Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 33577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
The small room suddenly felt charged with tension. I noticed details about her I'd missed before. Her pulse fluttering at the base of her throat and she gripped her knees tight enough to whiten her knuckles. The faint scent of leather and something sweeter beneath it seemed to radiate from her. Vanilla, maybe? It suited her.
"Why did you claim me?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "You could have just beaten him up and let me go."
"No, I couldn't have." I ran a hand through my hair, frustrated at how hard it was to explain. "Once you were in that hallway with Shank, once he targeted you, there was no going back. If I'd just beaten him and let you go, they would have come for you later. Used you to get to us."
"But why say I'm yours? Why not just offer protection?"
I exhaled slowly. How could I explain something I didn't fully understand myself? How a single look from her had awakened something primal in me? How the thought of Shank's hands on her had filled me with a rage so pure it had nearly blinded me?
"In our world, protection isn't enough," I said instead. "You have to belong to someone. Be claimed. Otherwise, you're fair game. Even the club whores have a cut with their designation. That way there are no mistakes. The women belong to the club so they’re under our protection. By claiming you myself, the rest of my brothers know you’re not to be touched, unlike the club whores."
She processed this, her eyes never leaving mine. "And that's all it was? Protection?"
The question hung in the air between us, loaded with implications. I should have said yes. Should have kept it simple, professional. Just a decent man doing something kind for a woman too innocent for her own good. But those amber eyes pulled the truth from me like a magnet drawing iron filings.
"No," I admitted. "That's not all it was."
She shivered, closing her eyes tightly for a brief moment. "Then what was it?" Poor thing had to be terrified, but I saw a faint blush stain her cheeks. Interesting. The space between us seemed to crackle with electricity. I could see every detail of her face now. The faint freckles across her nose, the tiny scar at the corner of her mouth, the way her pupils dilated, all of it had me captivated in a way I’d never experienced.
"I don't know," I said, my voice rough with honesty. "But from the moment you walked in, something in me wanted you. So when the opportunity came, I took it.”
Her breath caught, her lips parting slightly. How had I moved so near her without realizing? We were close enough now I could feel the warmth radiating from her skin. Close enough that if I leaned forward just a few more inches, I could capture those lips with mine. Not in the brutal, claiming kiss from earlier, but something real. Something that had nothing to do with protection or territory and everything to do with the way my heart hammered against my ribs when she looked at me. Or I caught her scent. And, God help me, I’d been in the woman’s presence for less than an hour and I knew I was so fucked as to not even be believed.
A sharp knock at the door shattered the moment. We both jerked back, the spell broken.
"Prez!" A prospect's voice called through the door. "Ghost says you need to come now. It's urgent."
I closed my eyes briefly, swallowing a curse. "Be right there," I called back. When I looked at Honey again, she had retreated to her corner of the couch, arms wrapped around herself like armor. The vulnerability still there even though she tried to lock it away behind careful walls. "I have to go," I said, already rising to my feet.
She nodded, not meeting my eyes. "Yep."
I moved to the door, pausing with my hand on the knob. "Try to get some sleep. You're safe here."
As I stepped out into the hallway, I cursed under my breath. Whatever was waiting for me better be fucking important, because the only place I wanted to be right now was back in that room, finishing what we'd started.
Chapter 4
Honey
Istood in Jack's kitchen, fidgeting with the leather vest that now marked me as his "property." I'd found it hanging on the bedroom door this morning with a note that simply read "Wear it." No please, no explanation. Just a command I didn't dare ignore. Now I stress-cooked enough food to feed a small army, hoping the familiar motions would calm my racing thoughts.
After Jack had left last night, I'd tossed and turned on his bed for hours before finally passing out from exhaustion. When I woke, he was gone, but fresh clothes had appeared. The jeans fit surprisingly well, a simple black tank top, and this leather vest with "PROPERTY OF BLOODY JACK" emblazoned across the back in blood-red stitching. The front had the club's insignia. Which was a skull dripping blood into cupped hands. Charming.